Since climate change currently affects humans considerably, it is naturally also discussed across all fields of science. However, to avoid the negative thinking many people seem to have adopted, we applied a critical but also controversial approach to thinking about climate change.

The focus is on emphasizing positive changes or unexpected effects caused by climate change. To make this course accessible to the general public, we required the lecturers to present their material in a clearly understandable way, and invited researchers from various fields such as politics, law, anthropology, biology and chemistry to provide additional expertise. As the course promotes sustainable thinking, it was taken up by the University of Konstanz’s Green Office as a means of earning the “Nachhaltigkeitszertifikat” (sustainability certificate). The course was organized in collaboration with the Department of Biology, specifically limnology. The persons responsible are Ioanna Salvarina (Biology), Elizabeth Yohannes (Biology) and Dennis Pingen (Chemistry).